


Private Pool

by Gossamer_Wings



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Asra's Route, Bathing/Washing, Bathtubs, Book X: Wheel of Fortune, Fluff, Gender-Neutral Apprentice, Other, POV First Person, and lets be honest this is just one big fantasy anyways, because I am a fool who only knows how to write in that apparently, there's so much fluff they're so in love guys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-25
Updated: 2018-05-25
Packaged: 2019-05-13 14:24:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14750582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gossamer_Wings/pseuds/Gossamer_Wings
Summary: "Wow! The Countess's private pool," Portia smiled, bumping against me, "What an honor!"---Asra and the apprentice share a private bath for the first time in their new relationship.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> 23 DEC 18: lmao I was... so tired when I wrote and posted this guys. I was half asleep. the middle of the night. I didnt even reread it until now, too embarrassed. Im so glad im done with my first draft of the first 4 books rewrite, its way better. this'll remain untouched but so, so outdated........
> 
> ORIGINAL: goDS I don't know what I'm doing lmao  
>  I just thought it was a /crime/ that I didn't see any stories yet on this. I read Asra's route yesterday, was frustrated all evening and morning, then finally wrote it out this afternoon.  
>  I didn't have anyone else read it for me, I'm just throwing it out to you guys so I can get some feedback. I really haven't written anything before that wasn't for school, so I'm trying to figure out how I work still. The "mature" rating is for a small bit towards the end - it's not much but really writing this stuff out is tough man. It stops being a dizzying for you when you've thought about how to word it a million times. let me know what you guys think!

Stepping off the veranda and into the palace, I sighed with relief that the meeting with The Countess had gone smoothly.  Rushing all night to get ahead of the swarm of beetles flying this way had been tiring, and that was already after a busy day with Asra.  Our short stop in the woods hadn't even been a rest; it was filled with more questions than answers.  There was at least one weight off our shoulders with the Courtiers, however unsettling in their ways, going to deal with the bugs.  

Nadia brought our small group to a halt in the halls, and waved at her handmaiden before addressing Asra and I.  "Portia.  Would you draw a bath for our guests? Mine is the finest in the house.  You are welcome to use it... both of you."

"Wow! The Countess's private pool," Portia smiled, bumping against me, "What an honor!"

I sigh at the thought of it.  Beside me, Asra groans in appreciation as well.

"Sounds perfect to me.  What do you want to do, Malory?"

_Silly to even ask,_ I think. Of course I want a bath, and I see no reason to split up for it when we've bathed together before, even if it wasn't in a private setting.

"Lead the way," I smile to Portia.

Nadia seems pleased at our acceptance of her offer. "Lovely," she says.

"Lovely is right," Asra says, smiling at me, "We'll clean up nicely, don't worry Countess." He's alight with excitement, waving to Nadia as Portia ushers us away.

"Oh, I have no doubt you will."


	2. Chapter 2

It's a warm summer morning, but The Countess's private pool still gives off a faint steam from its hot water.   Several servants bustled about when we arrived to set everything up, giving us robes and whisking away our dirtied clothes with faint looks of shock, but Portia led them all away as soon as they were done with a wink and a smile to me.

Nadia's bath is beautiful.  Asra and I walk barefoot towards the pool, and I am amazed at the sight of it all.  The room is bright and open, warm without being stifling. Tiles form beautiful mosaics and my eyes are drawn across them, up to a large mirror.

When I catch sight of my reflection, I burst into laughter.

"What's so funny?" I hear Asra ask from behind me.

"There's mud all over my face!" I exclaim between giggles. I knew I had to be a mess after the day we had yesterday, but I didn't expect to be faced with it in such a way... 

"I'm here in the palace, the private bath of The Countess, in such fine bathrobes... and my face is  _covered_ in mud.  Why didn't you tell me?" 

Asra blushes in the reflection of the mirror as he admits, "I don't see that kind of thing when I look at your face..."

I stop at the softness of his words and tilt my head to the side, "How can you not?" I wonder out loud. 

He meets my eyes in the mirror, then comes to stand behind me with his arms around my waist and head on my shoulder.  I lean into him and smile softly at the new intimacy between us.  We'd been close before, never shying away from many topics or touches, but these past weeks changed it so much.  He was opening up to me in ways I couldn't remember him doing before, no longer hiding.

"It's these eyes that I can't escape," he admits quietly, "the rest of the world loses focus... nothing else matters."

I feel the truth in his words, his raw emotions coming off of him in waves and he kisses my neck softly, holding me tight.  Humming softly, I'm blown away again and again every time he shows such care for me.  Turning me away from the mirror, he runs his hands up my sides and to cradle my face in his hands as he kisses me softly.

I can't help but smile into it and kiss him back.

These past days have been incredible, as we find we move so well together. He never pushes, accepting my pace I've set of finally finding my way to him.

We break apart and stand in quiet peace, resting our foreheads together.  He brushes his thumb across my cheek, and I feel him laugh softly.

"You  _do_ have mud all over your face."

I burst into laughter again, joined this time by him, as I shove his chest and we make our way to the pool.

 

 

My head resting on the tiles, stretching out my limbs in the warm water, the layer of grime washes away from my tired limbs.  Asra slips in beside me, sighing.

"This is the best," he says sitting in the shallows of the water.

I hum in content agreement, and find myself loath to move... But look over at his teasing tone when he speaks up again.

"Here, I'll wash your face."

His smile is mischievous as he opens his arms to me.  I raise my eyebrow questioningly, but he offers nothing else and I let him guide me to lay my head in his lap.  My hair is submerged and I look up at his happy face while I stretch out again in my new spot.

This pool really is wonderfully sized.

"Comfortable?" He asks.

I am.  I've never been anything but happy to be around Asra, and the care he's treating me with at the moment is incredibly soft.  I can feel his care and appreciation for me pouring out of his aura, and I find myself hoping he never muffles it again.

He attends to the mud, washing my face with a gentle touch, and kissing the spots he's cleaned afterwards.  He even drifts down under my head to massage my hair and run his hands through my curls.

I feel so pampered.

My eyes threaten to close, but I force them open to keep watching his lovesick features as he attends to me.

Once my face is cleaned, and my hair de-tangled, I sit up and turn around to thank him.

"Anytime," He offers.  My heart swells with affection.

"I'll wash your hair," I reply.

Asra's eyes light up. "Oh, sure! One moment."

While he ducks under the water I search the bottles left out for a soap.  Any of these ought to do the job, but there's a surprising amount of them...

When I return he's sitting in the shallow of the pool, smiling at me and soaked through.  His hair lays flat like the other day while we hid from the rain under the palm trees, and the thin white bathrobe he's wearing has fallen open and turned slightly transparent and clings to his chest.

I'm struck speechless and find myself flustered and unsure where to position myself, before letting him guide me again into his lap - my knees on either side of his.

He smiles charmingly at me while I take a moment to just breathe and look at him.

It seems he's content to do the same.  He places his hands on my sides, and I relax and sit on his legs.

As I wind my fingers into his hair and work the soap in, Asra's eyes slide shut and he makes a deep sound of appreciation.

"That smells amazing," he says in a breathy voice.

The gasp that escapes me is entirely involuntary.

He is so beautiful like this, content in my care and totally relaxed.  I feel energized from my head to my toes, heart beating rapidly and breathing deeply as I look at his face and distractedly continue to wash his hair.

Pushing closer to him, I feel his breath hitch as his chest rises and falls against mine.  His hands tighten on my sides, and I pull slightly on his hair.

His quiet laugh in response makes me ache.  I hold his head softly in my hands and affectionately take in the sight of him until he opens his eyes, smiling up at me.

"Done?"

I nod and move to sit up on my knees and get out of his way, but he keeps his hands on my sides as he slides under me.

My breath leaves me entirely.

He closes his eyes and dips his head underwater, curls tickling between my knees.

I stare wide-eyed while he shakes the bubbles out of his hair... then slides back up so that he's sitting in front of me again, hair dripping and smiling that damn smile of his.

"That was nice," he breathes as I continue to stare, hovering over his lap.

Water rushes out of the way as we surge towards each other, pressing our bodies as close as we can.

Asra moans into a kiss one of us started as I run my hands through his hair again, and he wraps his arms around me to pull me hard against him.

Gasping and breathless we move against each other, robes barely hanging on while our hands roam and our senses are entirely overtaken by the feel of wet skin on skin.

His head falls to my shoulder as I kiss across his face and down his neck.  I hear him sigh in my ear, a noise for me alone in the steamy chamber, and I close my eyes - overwhelmed by it all.

Ever attentive to my every mood, Asra stops pulling me against him and simply holds me as we rest against each other and catch our breath.

I huff a small laugh against his neck, and kiss it softly again.  _THAT was nice_ , I giggle to myself.

Our heart-rates return to normal in our embrace, and when we break apart Asra beams at what he sees.

As gorgeous as he's ever been he tells me, "You're shining like a rain drop."

I laugh and run a hand down the side of his face, still amazed at the situation.  "We smell great."

"We smell delicious," he agrees before his face falls a bit. "This is the hardest part... getting out.  Wait here."

Asra mournfully leaves my arms and departs from the pool, his robe dripping onto the floor.  I quietly adjust mine as I catch my breath again before he returns with towels, sweeping me out of the bath and wrapping me up tightly.

Kissing me one last time on the cheek, he hurries us out through the halls towards my guestroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you know how difficult it is not to start every sentence with "I" or "My" or "he" or "his"?? I have no idea what the pacing on this looks like and am afraid to look at it tomorrow once I'm done with all my errands. It's so late where I'm at right now.

**Author's Note:**

> I have an idea of my apprentice, I know a lot about them and want to write out their entire story... but that'll come with time. I don't want to write the whole thing out without knowing all of the story... luckily this is just a small one-shot ;)  
> maybe I'll share a few more of these and then eventually edit and piece them together into a better story.


End file.
